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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29083353">Pre-Old War Era</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZenJackSynn/pseuds/ZenJackSynn'>ZenJackSynn</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Pre-Old War Era [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Warframe</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 11:08:14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>7,536</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29083353</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZenJackSynn/pseuds/ZenJackSynn</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Pre-Old War Era [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2133774</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Pre-Old War Era: Part 1, Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Origin System, before ruled by the Orokin, full of mysteries yet to be explored, untainted from Orokin ruin. One of a kind, the Earth, inhabited by pure humanity. The soon-to-be Tenno, the Archimedeans, the soon-to-be tech cult Corpus, the Ostrons and the Steel Path soldiers, The Dax.</p><p>All united, one society. That was life on Earth before the Old War. A society with airtight constitution, ensuring fairness and equal opportunity for everyone. An egalitarian society ever experienced, probably the first and the last. The sharp blade of upright justice, wield by The Dax, pursued a just cause, and rightly so.</p><p>In the current post-Old War, it was unimaginable that all factions would be at peace and in tolerance with one another, in one unity before the Old War began. Some assume that the factions were always in conflict since the beginning of time. The Corpus, the soon-to-be Tenno, along with the Archimedeans, the Dax and the Ostrons in unity. That seemed like a dream that might never come true again, imagined by the divided factions in the post-Old War era.</p><p>The atmosphere on Earth in the pre-Old War era was rather peaceful. Peace was something that everyone sought after, and very much treasured by the New Loka… until the Orokin and the Grineer faction arrived to the Origin System and everything changed for the worse thereafter.</p><p> </p><p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p><p>*********</p><p>*********</p><p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>“Margulis.” Martha called.</p><p>“Yes mother?”</p><p>“Your brother called last night. He’s returning back from his trip.”</p><p>“You don’t seem happy about it. What’s wrong?”</p><p>“A mysterious form of energy was detected from outer space, far beyond our solar system, but visible from ours, your brother says.”</p><p>“What mysterious energy, exactly?”</p><p>“And some kind of radio waves that were picked up by the transceivers. Some encrypted message was detected by the transceiver algorithms.”</p><p>“That’s not possible. Andrei and his colleagues have done several experiments to detect for extra-terrestrial beings for 28 years after the magnetic flux incident in space. And they found nothing, unless…”</p><p>“Unless we can still find the source of the energy.” Martha interrupted.</p><p>“It's too risky. They don’t have the equipment necessary to move from The Origin System to the outer gates.” Margulis said.</p><p>“Interesting. This mysterious energy is different from the influx.” Martha stated.</p><p>“You said Andrei received an encrypted message. What does the message say?”</p><p>“Your brother will explain everything when he gets here. I am stunned as you are.”</p><p>Margulis sat down in fear, attempting to figure out whether it could be a threat. A threat of extra-terrestrial invasion? Perhaps. Other human life forms? It’s too early to tell.</p><p>On her way to the main living room, Martha came to a halt and just remembered an important event.</p><p>“I almost forgot about this...” Martha said.</p><p>“What is it mother?” Margulis replied.</p><p>“It’s Drusus’s birthday next week.”</p><p>“It’s almost five years since he passed away” Margulis proclaimed sadly.</p><p>“Your father was a true gentleman. Drusus meant a lot to this community.”</p><p>Margulis gave a heavy sigh.</p><p>“Your father always wanted you to be a Psychologist and become an Archimedean that he envisioned you to be.”</p><p>“I haven’t opened his library yet. I can’t still…. I don’t know how to find…”</p><p>“Closure?” Martha asked.</p><p>Margulis went silent for a moment, looking down to her work desk.</p><p>“Spend some quality time in his library. You will make peace with his passing.”</p><p>“I don’t understand. He died a mysterious death. How? Why?”</p><p>“Margulis…”</p><p>“There must be an explanation…”</p><p>“Margulis, let it go.”</p><p>“But…”</p><p>“But nothing! Let it go!”</p><p>There was silence for a moment.</p><p>“Listen, I wish I had all the answers, but I don’t. The cause of death is unknown. The doctors assume he died a natural death.”</p><p>Margulis was silent for a brief moment. A tear drop from her left eye down to her cheek.</p><p>“Don’t cry sweetie. We will get through this. I know you still blame Andrei for letting your father go alone, but it’s not his fault.”</p><p>Martha wiped Margulis’s tears from her eyes.</p><p>“Your father was at conflict with him. It pains Andrei that he left without them being on good terms. Andrei is not coping well with his passing. He doesn’t want you to resent him for what happened between the two of them. He needs you as a sister.”</p><p>Martha raised Margulis chin and looked in her eyes.</p><p>“He is your only brother. You surely don’t want to lose him too.”</p><p>Margulis nodded.</p><p>“You have a lecture class tomorrow. Get some rest and we talk to your brother tomorrow evening.”</p><p>Margulis nodded.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Pre-Old War Era: Part 1, Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“The final decision has been concluded by The Council of The Seven. We, thereby, reject the works of Albrecht Entrati.” The Seven concluded.</p><p>“Why is that, Honoured Seven?” Orokin Prosecutor Pavel asked.</p><p>“His experiments are a complete failure. He exercised his opportunities to prove his Arcane Theorems but to no avail. It is a waste of resources. We have to cut him out.”</p><p>“Not yet, Honoured Seven” Pavel replied.</p><p>“His ninety-seventh attempt was a disaster. Entrati caused an influx eruption, a massive magnetic flux throughout space that could have destabilized the Orientation Matrix of the *<strong>Maxicutus</strong>. It is the only system that keeps the void rail portals stable.”</p><p>“I understand your decision, Your Honour, but I have a counter-argument against it.” Pavel declared.</p><p>“Let’s hear it, Prosecutor Pavel.” The Seven instructed.</p><p>“We have been producing advanced technology for the Orokin Empire for thousands of years. Our solar system, The Otal System, is being depleted of resources and we are running short.”</p><p>“What is your point, Pavel?”</p><p>“We know that our technology is insufficient to enable us to traverse multiple systems at a shorter span of time. The nearest galaxy to our system doesn’t seem very near considering the traveling distance.”</p><p>“You are wasting our time, Prosecutor!”</p><p>“I ask for your patience, my Lords” Prosecutor Pavel pleaded.</p><p>“Continue.” The Seven said.</p><p>“What if there is a way to traverse multiple systems at a shorter span of time using Albrecht’s work? What if we use our technology to dominate multiple galaxies at once and spread the reigns of the Orokin Empire throughout multiple universes using Albrecht’s theory? Entrati was the first person to explore the newly discovered energy, a medium to traverse through, called the Void after all.”</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>“That sounds like a plan Prosecutor, but his work failed. Even if we try to salvage the work, it’s unlikely that it will be a success due to his failed theory. Therefore you have presented no evidence that we can.” The Seven exclaimed.</p><p>“Your Honour, I have with me an Executor to give you the evidence. It is a breakthrough in Orokin research. We can take advantage of the Entrati’s work without acknowledging him, considering that he is still missing. It will work for us perfectly. Your Honour, I introduce to you, Executor Ballas.”</p><p>“Ballas?!” The Seven stated in shock.</p><p>“Honoured Seven. I stand before you to represent this astonishing evidence. May I have the honour to take the stand?” Executor Ballas pleaded.</p><p>“Go ahead” The Seven stated in amusement.</p><p>Executor Ballas presented evidence that the void can be used to traverse multiple galaxies using the Void Compass designed by Albrecht Entrati. The Void Compass is used to set a waypoint to the desired destination through the void portal. The Void Compass embedded on the Orokin ships work hand in hand with the <strong>*Maxicutus</strong> to ensure that the ships moves from one point to another in only a single direction, therefore preventing a fold from occurring.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>*Maxicutus: An orientation system embedded in portals that ensures the accuracy of the Void Compass on spaceships. This allows spaceships to travel in one direction back and forth in order to avoid loss of co-ordination and an event of a fold.</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Albrecht has been working with his colleagues in traveling through the void. Some of his colleagues, during the test run for the Void Compass and the Maxicutus, fell into a void jump, which concluded that there was a fault with both the pointing systems. Unfortunately, nothing returns from the fold and some of his colleagues suffered such a terrible fate. How do we know this? The Seriglass equipped in the ships only break when making a fold, which was something the researchers initially tried to avoid. When the Seriglass broke, the members boarding the ship report back to the base, concluding that the ship is about to make a fold. To salvage the situation, the Maxicutus is then set to overdrive to enable the ship to head back to the portal before the fold completes. This attempt, however, had a success rate of 33% from the tests that were executed. It was until an Orokin researcher, Yuveer, an extremely talented man, found a method to tweak the Maxicutus finely which fixed the main issue with overdrive. With the modification set by Orokin Researcher Yuveer, after several attempts to cross the void and making a fold, the overdrive has had a success rate of 95%.</p><p>This was a final breakthrough in the Maxicutus Project, until The Seven decided to shut down the project after the incidental magnetic flux during the ninety seventh attempt. However, the report, indicating the new developments and progress made, was never drafted by Entrati to be handed over to The Seven due to the laboratory shut down. But there has been hidden logs of Vitruvian recordings done by Albrecht Entrati about the success of the Maxicutus and the Void Compass.</p><p>After weeks of investigation into the incidental flux, Executor Ballas ran across the Vitruvian recordings by Entrati in the laboratory basement. After listening to the recordings, to his amazement, he agreed to himself that this was indeed a breakthrough in Orokin research. He immediately developed a report as he was assigned to by Prosecutor Pavel to present forth to The Council of The Seven.</p><p>The Council then found the evidence very astounding. With so much progress in Albrecht Entrati’s research, The Seven decided to backtrack their decision and incorporate his works in Orokin Technology. The Otal System is depleting of resources as the Orokin Empire seeks to increase its power and influence throughout multiple systems as much as possible. Entrati’s work has opened many opportunities for the Orokin Empire to grow exponentially. The Entrati family denied The Seven from using Albrecht’s work due to the fact that The Seven refused to acknowledge him during the time Albrecht was missing. The attempt of the Entrati to seize Albrecht’s work was considered as treason. As a result, The Seven has decided to sentence the Entrati family. Considering what the sentence might be is still unknown.</p><p>The whereabouts of Albrecht Entrati is still unknown.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Pre-Old War Era: Part 1, Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Margulis. A young, smart, beautiful and a well-articulated individual. Her character, overall, is welcoming and very nurturing. She has the glow like her mother, Martha, which astonishes everyone she meets. Second first impression, some might say. Her feminine aura radiates like wild fire spreading at rapid momentum. An aura that was felt by people wherever she goes. She wonders why she is getting so much admiration from so many people when she, herself, has not done anything worth recognising or admiring. It is her aura, the magnetism that attracts everyone to her. That was the main reason she mostly preferred staying indoors. The attention is pretty much overwhelming. Not to mention the suitors as well, but Margulis has no intention of dating anyone at the moment.</p>
<p>It’s her third year into psychology. She was ready to pursue her dream of becoming an Archimedean. She has finally opened her father’s library to seek closure with Drusus’s passing. She hit rock bottom since his passing and not having to know the cause of his death. She never thought her life would ever be the same without him. She started reading some of her father’s work on psychology for almost nine months. Some of his techniques has help Margulis to heal and make peace with Drusus’s passing.</p>
<p>It was time for her to start a new chapter in her life. That is what her father would have wanted for her. And so she did.</p>
<p>Early Monday morning at the Institution of Archimedean Studies;</p>
<p>“A brand new year, new experiences and a new chapter of your life!” Silvana stated excitedly.</p>
<p>“I guess so.” Margulis replied.</p>
<p>“I know it has been rough since your father passed away, but I am here to support you. You know that, right?”</p>
<p>“I appreciate that Silvana.”</p>
<p>“You finally opened that library, didn’t you?”</p>
<p>“Wait… Who told you that?” Margulis asked curiously.</p>
<p>Silvana remained silent for a while, looking sideways.</p>
<p>“Andrei!” Margulis exclaimed.</p>
<p>“I think you have been way too harsh on him, lately.” Silvana suggested.</p>
<p>Margulis was quiet briefly.</p>
<p>“C’mon now. You can’t be mad at him forever.”</p>
<p>“I know. It’s just… I don’t know how to process how I feel about Andrei. The conflict he had with my father… It’s was just too much”</p>
<p>“Look. Your brother is already distraught over his passing. His father died without them being on good terms.” Silvana interrupted.</p>
<p>“You sound exactly like my mother.”</p>
<p>“Cut him some slack, will you?” Silvana pleaded.</p>
<p>“I will try.” Margulis said.</p>
<p>Silvana’s phone rings as she excuses herself. Meanwhile, Michael approaches as he winks at Margulis.</p>
<p>“Hey there, Michael. Great to see you again!” Margulis greeted excitedly.</p>
<p>“You looking great as always Margulis.” said Michael.</p>
<p>They both smiled at each other for a while. Silvana just ended her call.</p>
<p>“Guys, did you hear about Kaleen? She just got engaged last week!” Silvana stated.</p>
<p>“Here we go again!” Michael said disappointedly.</p>
<p>“What do you mean?” Silvana looked at Michael curiously.</p>
<p>“Gossip is a bad habit, Silvana. You study psychology, and you know this.” Michael replied.</p>
<p>“Oh please! Gossip has never killed anyone.”</p>
<p>“Why don’t you apply to be a gossip writer, taboo as it is, for a magazine if it’s not so bad?”</p>
<p> “Guys?” Margulis tried to interrupt.</p>
<p>“Let me guess this right… You are jealous of Kaleen, aren’t you?” Michael proclaimed.</p>
<p>Silvana folded her arms and look to the other direction.</p>
<p>“It wasn’t too hard to guess that, huh?” Michael said proudly.</p>
<p>“You know what, the both of you are perfect for each other. I can see it work out perfectly.” Margulis stated jokingly.</p>
<p>“What! Me and Michael? No way.” Silvana proclaimed.</p>
<p>“Uh-huh...” Margulis replied.</p>
<p>“I only see Michael as a friend.”</p>
<p>“Is that so? How about last week when we kissed at St. Silverton?” Michael asked Silvana.</p>
<p>Shocked at what Michael said, with eyes wide open, Margulis looked at Silvana. Silvana remained silent.</p>
<p>“Oh… I didn’t know that you...” Margulis surprisingly stated.</p>
<p>“Consider it a mistake, Michael.” Silvana interrupted.</p>
<p>“Whatever Silvana.” Michael replied.</p>
<p>Margulis later receives a text message from her mother: “Hey sweetie, your brother is home. It’s been a year without seeing him. Come home as soon as possible. I will be preparing a nice meal. Love you!”</p>
<p>“My brother is back from his trip. Unfortunately, he came back with bad news, as he always does.” Margulis proclaimed annoyed.</p>
<p>“This is exactly what I was talking about. You still angry with Andrei to this day.” Silvana replied angrily to Margulis.</p>
<p>“That’s cool! Can I come with you to see him?” Michael asked excitedly, interrupting Silvana.</p>
<p>“Michael, don’t you ever interrupt me when I’m talking! What do you have to say about this, Margulis? He is your brother, for love’s sake!” Silvana proclaimed.</p>
<p>“I know that Silvana. I am not happy with that too, but I’m trying to let it go.” Margulis said.</p>
<p>“Are you really trying? Your attitude towards him says otherwise.”</p>
<p>“He’s my only brother and I love him. I don’t want to lose him too.”</p>
<p>“Then get it right with him, before it’s too late. You don’t want to feel the same way he feels now.” Silvana replied.</p>
<p>“I will fix things with him, I promise.”</p>
<p>Silvana started to ease down and became ecstatic about Andrei’s return.</p>
<p>“Can I come to see him too?” Silvana asked excitedly</p>
<p>“Yeah, you can come. You too, Michael.” Margulis said.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Margulis could not believe that she was still angry with Andrei. It wasn’t his fault. He wanted to go with him, but Drusus demanded that he stay. After Andrei mistakenly jacked up the system servers at Drusus’s headquarters, which contained Drusus’s data scientific research towards Astronomy, her father became very angry with him. Drusus had to head back to the portal and head to space to recollect the data, only that he refused Andrei to go with him and headed alone. Eventually after five days, he finally returns safely but he seems very distressed, his demeanour showed that he was ill somehow.</p>
<p>He couldn’t see nothing, Margulis remembers. His eyes were glowing white, his iris changed colour completely. He was responsive at first, then later became unresponsive. As Martha and Andrei lay him on his bed, his neck and lower arm started twitching uncontrollably. His veins turned black all the way to his head. After a while, his lips started moving, but no words came out of his mouth. Eventually, a light voice came. Andrei listened closely to what Drusus was saying. Andrei couldn’t pick up any meaning from what he said. He spoke as if he used a foreign language, Andrei said to her mother. As Martha started panicking, she called Archimedean Gerald immediately. Unfortunately, Gerald couldn’t figure out what was wrong with him and couldn’t help. He suggested giving him some medication to ease and numb the pain he was experiencing. The conditioned continued for weeks. Drusus became unresponsive later on.</p>
<p>A month has passed. Margulis slowly approached Drusus where he was lying. Andrei was behind her. As her mind wonders what happened to her father, she cried. What could have happened to her father, Margulis thought. Andrei could see the emotional distraught she was in, Andrei held her close to his chest and hugged her closely. As he was comforting her, he whispered to her that everything is going to be alright. She then became angry and pushed him away. It’s your fault Andrei, Margulis said furiously to Andrei. If he did go with him, Andrei could have protected Drusus from whatever attacked him. Andrei kept reinforcing that his father demanded that he stay behind, but Andrei knew how stubborn Margulis is. Margulis refused to believe him.</p>
<p>Margulis was quiet all the way home while Silvana and Michael were conversing. Silvana realized that Margulis was in deep thought. She was clearly not over her resentment of her brother yet. Silvana was afraid that Margulis might decide to cut Andrei out of her life completely. The only thing keeping Margulis and Andrei together is Martha, Silvana thought. What will happen between the two if Martha leaves? Will they stop contact with one another? Silvana eventually became unsettled from that thought.</p>
<p>After a few minutes, Silvana unexpectedly receives an email from Andrei<em>: “Hey Silvana. Hope you doing great. I’ve been trying to contact Margulis for months now and it seems she has blocked me on her phone. I think I know why, probably she’s still mad at me about the incident. I just wanted to surprise her with a gift, and I also wanted to say to her that I love her so much. No matter what happens between me and Margulis, I will always be her loving brother, and I will never stop loving and protecting her. If you are with her, please show her this message. – Andrei”</em></p>
<p>Silvana thought of showing Margulis the message from Andrei, but she hesitated. It took the group thirty minutes to get to their destination.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Pre-Old War: Part 1, Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Who would have known that you would betray us Ballas? My father treated you like his son. And yet, you continued with this investigation, these… these shenanigans, without informing us. We could have done something. You know The Council is up to no good.” Mother said furiously.</p>
<p>“Calm down, woman. You are getting too worked up now.” Ballas replied.</p>
<p>“You got the nerve to say that to me…”</p>
<p>“Listen. I have a job to do. Now, if you’ll excuse me.” Ballas interrupted and left.</p>
<p>“Everything that you are is because of Albrecht! You wouldn’t have the life that you have and you wouldn’t have the knowledge you have without Albrecht! He encouraged you to become the Executor that you are now!”</p>
<p>Ballas continues to walk away, exiting the room.</p>
<p>“YOU’LL PAY FOR THIS, BALLAS. MARK MY WORDS!” Mother shouted angrily.</p>
<p>“What is all the noise and the yapping about?! Lower your voices, for Orokin’s sake.” Prosecutor Jansen said.</p>
<p>Mother hit Jansen’s shoulder with hers as she stormed out the room.</p>
<p>“Jee, this woman is something else hey?” Pavel said jokingly.</p>
<p>“She’s still upset with The Council. They refused to acknowledge Albrecht for his work. I have to say, his work is quite something. I still wonder why The Council made him disappear just like that…”</p>
<p>“Shhh, be quiet! Do you want the Entrati to know about this? Watch your mouth!” Pavel interrupted Jansen.</p>
<p>“What’s the worst that could happen?”</p>
<p>“Are you really that stupid?! Her husband pioneers the Necraloid project, along with Loid and Cephalon Otak. The Council is trying to find his hidden base where he is producing these Necramechs. Remember when he was banished from the Otal System?” Pavel stated.</p>
<p>“You knew this, but you never bothered to tell me about it?!” Jansen asked angrily.</p>
<p>“He found his way back, not to our system, but to the nearest one, we assume. How he got there is still a mystery.”</p>
<p>“Unless…”</p>
<p>“Unless he used Albrecht Entrati’s work to traverse there!” Pavel completed Jansen’s statement.</p>
<p>“Gentlemen.” The Third of The Council of The Seven greeted.</p>
<p>“The Honoured Third, Greetings.” Pavel and Jansen responded at the same time.</p>
<p>“What is the fuss all about?” The Third asked.</p>
<p>“We were discussing the fate of the Entrati, your honour.” Pavel said.</p>
<p>“Good. It is time that they serve their sentence for treason. Make sure that you do your job, Pavel!”</p>
<p>“Yes sir.”</p>
<p>“As for you Jansen… you will have to find the Necraloid Establishment. You will spearhead the Maxicutus Project, Albrecht’s work, and ensure that everything goes well. Get it up and running. We have to find where the Necramech establishment is and destroy it or we suffer a terrible fate.” The Third said.</p>
<p>“Yes, your honour.” Jansen said.</p>
<p>“Executor Ballas will be second in command. Is that clear Prosecutor Jansen?”</p>
<p>“Yes, your honour”</p>
<p>“To also mention this, we will have to find a new system that the Orokin Empire can populate. The Otal System is running short of resources.” The Third said.</p>
<p>“We have to be careful, your highness. The faction that we might find in the nearest system might been powerful than the Orokin. We might be compromised then, and it will…”</p>
<p>“Say no more, Jansen. Do not question the power of the Orokin. We are greater beings, created to dominate whatever we find along our path. Any faction we find, we shall domesticate them and they shall submit to us.” The Third interrupted Jansen</p>
<p>That’s a tall order, and assuming that the Orokin can take anything in its path is idiotic, Pavel thinks quietly to himself.</p>
<p>“So gentlemen, we will talk later.” The Third said.</p>
<p>“Yes your highness.”</p>
<p>.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>*********</p>
<p>*********</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Crewman 5: “Commencing our first attempt to travel the void. We have 30 crew members on the Mestatai spaceship. Rolling out the punch-out engine. Crewman 22, start the jet engines.”</p>
<p>
  <em>(Jet engines starting)</em>
</p>
<p>Ballistic Commander: “Crewman 11, make sure that all gunrunning equipment is ready on board.”</p>
<p>Crewman 11: “Roger that, sir.”</p>
<p>
  <em>(Mestatai spaceship begins to hover above the ground)</em>
</p>
<p>Crewman 11: “All ballistics are ready Commander.”</p>
<p>Ballistic Commander: “Perfect.”</p>
<p>Researcher Lenaar: “We have the Maxicutus engine ready. Inducing the Orientation Matrix for stabilization.”</p>
<p>Flight Commander: “Crewman 19, activate the void compass.”</p>
<p>Crewman 19: “Void compass activated.”</p>
<p>Flight Commander: “Lenaar, connect the Maxicutus to the Void Compass. Proxy 61, Gateway 266 Code T33, now.”</p>
<p>Researcher Lenaar: “Void Compass and Maxicutus connected… passively.”</p>
<p>Flight Commander: “We don’t have time, Lenaar. Get it active.”</p>
<p>Executor Ballas: “Boys, get ready for a fun ride. Lenaar, get access to Phase 22 on the Maxicutus so I can roll out the co-ordinates.”</p>
<p>Researcher Lenaar: “Void Compass and Maxicutus connected, actively. Phase 22 rolled out.”</p>
<p>Executor Ballas: “Crewman 22, rolling the co-ordinates to your dossier… now!”</p>
<p>Crewman 22: “Co-ordinates confirmed. Validating… Sending co-ordinates to Crewman 19.”</p>
<p>Crewman 19: “Co-ordinates received. Rolling the co-ordinates to the Void Compass.”</p>
<p>
  <em>(Void Compass tuning the navigation console)</em>
</p>
<p>Crewman 19: “Sending the log to the Maxicutus console now!”</p>
<p>
  <em>(Maxicutus tuning the navigation)</em>
</p>
<p>Crewman 19: “I see the waypoint now. Navigation system ready.”</p>
<p>Executor Ballas: “It’s time to take off. Prepare yourselves boys. It’s gonna be a wild ride!”</p>
<p>“Do not take off Crewman 5. Do not take off, not yet!” Prosecutor Jansen instructed, angrily.</p>
<p>“What is the matter now, Jansen?” Ballas is annoyed.</p>
<p>“I told you to use the Zariman Ten-zero ship, not the Mestatai!”</p>
<p>“The Zariman Ten-zero ship is unstable. It’s not ready yet.” Ballas gives a heavy sigh. “Here’s the field report of the Zariman.” Ballas stated, losing patience.</p>
<p>Jansen read the field report closely, and its findings state that the Zariman Ten-zero is in a dormant state. The Orientation Matrix has a mechanical fault. The Zariman is not reliable as yet.</p>
<p>“Fine. Carry on with the procedure.” Jansen said.</p>
<p>“Why did you doubt me in the first place?” Ballas states profusely.</p>
<p>“Just do your work Ballas.” Jansen walks off.</p>
<p>“You better not walk away from me Jansen!” Ballas demanded.</p>
<p>Jansen continues to walk off.</p>
<p>Executor Ballas: “Alright boys, take off and find me what I want.”</p>
<p>
  <em>(Mestatai spaceship takes off into the void)</em>
</p>
<p>Executor Ballas: “Lenaar, you know what to do from here.”</p>
<p>Researcher Lenaar: “Awaiting for the response from the Crewmen. If the Seriglass breaks, the Maxicutus will be set to overdrive to allow the ship to return before the fold completes.”</p>
<p>Executor Ballas: “Good.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>*********</p>
<p>*********</p>
<p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Can you see him?” Daughter asked in anticipation.</p>
<p>“I can see him. A solar system I can’t seem to recognise, definitely not the nearest to us. I am not familiar with this system” Grandmother said.</p>
<p>“Is he well?” Son asked calmly.</p>
<p>“He seems… I can’t really tell. They are building the Necramechs. They are heavily built. This is good news.” Grandmother said.</p>
<p>Mother enters the front door house, her face neutral, very emotionally exhausted.</p>
<p>“You say an unfamiliar system. Can you tell its properties?” Son asked curiously.</p>
<p>“Sorry Son. That is as far as I could go.”</p>
<p>Grandmother, mother to the Entrati family, is naturally gifted spiritually. So far, her psychic abilities have not shown any negative feedback. It has served her well for her entire life to this day and to the family as a whole. Mother has been trying to get Father to return to her, but to no avail. She had hoped Ballas could assist her, but Ballas seems confused about where his loyalty lies. It has been seven years since Father has been expelled from The Otal System.</p>
<p>“We need a new plan, quick!” Mother said.</p>
<p>“What new plan? What did Ballas say?” Son asked.</p>
<p>“I have a bad feeling about this. I fear that we might be executed instead.” Mother replied.</p>
<p>“By the Jade Light?” Daughter was frightened.</p>
<p>Mother nodded.</p>
<p>“We have to leave as soon as possible.” Grandmother said. “I have been trying to get hold of Father but to no avail. He might be able to assist.”</p>
<p>“How?” Son asked</p>
<p>“Your father found a new solar system that is not recognisable in Orokin Astronomy. There may be only one explanation how he might have got there.” Grandmother said</p>
<p>“He used Albrecht’s Void Compass?” Son asked.</p>
<p>“That is it.”</p>
<p>“He took a huge risk. Travelling through the Void without the Maxicutus? What would have happened if he came across a fold? He would have been trapped there, forever. Nothing returns from the fold.” Son said.</p>
<p>“We can be rest assured that he is safe, wherever he is, considering the visions I been having.” Grandmother said.</p>
<p>“We can’t leave the Otal System. It’s too risky.” Daughter said in worry.</p>
<p>“After everything my father did for Ballas, he turned on us. For what? What does he gain out of this?” Mother asked. “Ballas is not a fool at all. He has an upper hand against The Council. I can’t quite put my finger on it.”</p>
<p>“Ballas has committed multiple irregularities, and The Council has let him get away with it.” Son proclaimed.</p>
<p>“That explains his wishy-washy attitude. He managed to play both sides at the same time.” Daughter said.</p>
<p>There was silence for a moment.</p>
<p>“I think we might be in more trouble than I initially thought.” Son said.</p>
<p>“What is it?” Mother asked impatiently.</p>
<p>“Yesterday, I saw Prosecutor Pavel conversing with Executor Glassmaker Nihil.” Son replied. “I overheard their conversation. I couldn’t hear them clearly but I heard Glassmaker Nihil mention the Entrati name. I think that Nihil…”</p>
<p>“Stop that thought, now!” Mother interrupted Son.</p>
<p>Mother stood up slowly in fear. She assumes that Executor Nihil will glass the entire Entrati family by the order of The Council. That is not a pleasing thought, she says to herself. Luckily, after five weeks during the trail before the execution would have taken place, someone has finally come to the rescue for the Entrati family.</p>
<p>Son was working on an ultra-microwave transceiver before Father started his work on the Necramechs. He planned the transceiver to work long-range, probably reaching more than 8,000 trillion kilometres in order to observe other planetary systems. The project has been quite successful, not completely. The last attempt in using the transceiver, it reached a radius of 5,200 trillion kilometres. Halfway close, but not enough. It has been twelve years since he started the project and left it later on. The Orokin were planning to introduce a new project, spearheaded by Orokin Researcher Jeron. Jeron wanted Son to be involved in the project as they are very close intimately. Later on, Jeron refused to work with Son further due to the implications of the charge held against the Entrati. What the project entails is still unknown to this day.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Pre-Old War: Part 1, Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Already reaching late afternoon, Martha sees Margulis with her friends through the window. She wasn’t expecting visitors, but nonetheless she was happy that Andrei had people excited to see him. Andrei must have an influence on these kids, she thought.</p><p>“Hello dear. How are you doing?” Martha asked excitedly.</p><p>“We are doing just great, thank you.” Silvana and Michael said</p><p>“Hey mom.” Margulis kissed Martha on her cheek.</p><p>“I wasn’t expecting visitors.”</p><p>“I hope it’s not a problem, ma’am.” Silvana asked.</p><p>“No, it’s not a problem at all. I just don’t think we have enough food for all of us, but we can try.”</p><p>“Thanks”</p><p>Martha escorted the group to the dining room. Andrei was conserving with Dax Cassius outside on his porch. He then heard Margulis’s voice inside the house.</p><p>“This is a breakthrough, or so I think it is” Dax Cassius said.</p><p>“This could be a threat, Dax. We need to know what this is before it even gets here, whatever it is, so that we can prepare to take it head on. Please, consult with the Ostrons about this. Maybe they can find something.” Andrei requested Cassius.</p><p>“Will do.”</p><p>Andrei parts way with Dax Cassius as he heads inside.</p><p>“Archimedean Andrei.” Dax Cassius turns to Andrei.</p><p>“What is it?”</p><p>“The encrypted message… Any progress on its decryption?”</p><p>“I’ve reached a dead end, soldier.” Andrei replied. “We’ll figure out a way, eventually.”</p><p>“Do it quick. We can’t sleep peacefully without knowing what the message entails. It could be a threat or a warning. Do not shift you focus Andrei” said Dax Cassius.</p><p>Andrei nodded as he heads back into the house.</p><p>“Hey Andrei. Welcome back!” Silvana said excitedly.</p><p>“I am pretty sure you have a story to share in your journey into space.” Michael said.</p><p>“Well, it’s not much but I am willing to tell you all” Andrei replied.</p><p>Andrei turned his head to Margulis. There was silence for a brief moment.</p><p>“Hey Margulis.”</p><p>“Hello brother.”</p><p>There was silence for a brief moment. Margulis clears her throat.</p><p>“Uhm, I been meaning to say this….”</p><p>“I wanted to say that…”</p><p>“Sorry. You go first.”</p><p>“I know that you still blame me for that incident. I… I can’t really compute everything that has happened. I thought it through very hard. Very, very hard.”</p><p>“It wasn’t your fault, Andrei. Drusus, I mean, father refused to go with you. It was his call, after all. I was just saddened by his passing. I took out my frustrations onto you, and I apologize.”</p><p>“We will get through this Margulis.”</p><p>“I am really sorry. I love you Andrei. I should have realized how much pain you were going through. I won’t deny that you suffered more than I did due to his passing. And I sincerely apologize for trying to deny that truth before.”</p><p>Andrei gives a heavy sigh.</p><p>“I don’t know if I will ever recover from this. I am emotionally exhausted.”</p><p>“Just like you said, we will get through this.”</p><p>Margulis proceeds to hug Andrei closely. She remembers that day when Andrei tried to comfort her when her father was in a sort-like coma. She thought about how she angrily pushed back Andrei when he held her close. She feels his heart beat slowly at the moment. How selfish she was, she thought to herself. She denied him to express himself emotionally before when her father laid on his bed. She begins to hug him more closely. She remembers when Andrei uttered the words “Everything is going to be alright” before Drusus’s passing. She then decided to utter those words back to him.</p><p>“Everything is going to be alright.” Margulis said to Andrei.</p><p>“You remember?” Andrei surprisingly asked.</p><p>“How can I forget my brother’s warm-hearted words?”</p><p>“But I thought you were hurt by them.”</p><p>“No. I was just extremely selfish back then. I had no idea that you were paining this bad.”</p><p>Andrei looked at Margulis’s eyes and smiled. She smiled back.</p><p>To the delight of Silvana and Martha, Margulis and Andrei are finally on good terms. In the back of his mind, Andrei is focused on his discovery of the mysterious energy and the implicated meaning behind the encrypted message during dinner. Even though it occupied his mind, he was able to share his experience through space. It was his final assignment towards his second graduation. He was finely carved to have the second Archimedean title as an Astronaut, just like his father, only that Andrei has no interest in libraries and collecting books until they accumulate dust.</p><p> </p><p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p><p>*********</p><p>*********</p><p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>03:30 AM Morning, Still Dark</em>
</p><p>
  <em>(Andrei’s phone rings in the middle of the night)</em>
</p><p>“Hello?” Andrei answered.</p><p>“Hey, Andrei! It’s Gregory.”</p><p>“Dude, what the heck?!”</p><p>“What’s wrong?”</p><p>“You called me using a private number, and you called in the middle of the night. What, are you a creep?!” Andrei said, partially annoyed.</p><p>“Relax, snowflake.” Gregory teased Andrei.</p><p>“What’s the matter now?” Andrei asked curiously.</p><p>“I managed to crack the encryption to the message. It’s so weird.”</p><p>“What does it say?”</p><p>“It’s just a bunch of lines drawn in cursive, rather artistically, I can say. Beautifully drawn. I ran the drawings through the database and nothing pops up.”</p><p>“Lines drawn artistically?”</p><p>“Yup.” Gregory replied.</p><p>“What could they mean?”</p><p>“I have no clue Andrei.”</p><p>“Are you at the headquarters now?”</p><p>‘I’m waiting for you.” Gregory replied.</p><p>Andrei prepares to head down Gregory’s headquarters. As he moves down stairs, Margulis, partially awake, hears cracks down the hallway. To her surprise, it’s Andrei.</p><p>“Hey. What’s going on?” Margulis asked.</p><p>“I have to get somewhere. It’s important.”</p><p>“More important than your sleep?”</p><p>“Unfortunately, it is. It’s a matter of life and death.”</p><p>“Is this about the discovery that you made with your colleagues?”</p><p>“That’s right.”</p><p>“The mysterious energy or the encrypted message?”</p><p>“The encrypted message.”</p><p>“Someone managed to crack it?”</p><p>“Yup.”</p><p>“But yesterday, you never discussed about your discovery.”</p><p>“I didn’t want to just spill out the news yet. I wanted everyone to be in a good mood.”</p><p>“That’s understandable.”</p><p>“Yeah, so I have to go.”</p><p>“Silvana showed me the email you sent her. She showed it to me before she left.”</p><p>“Yeah, about that…”</p><p>“I love you too brother. I don’t want you to feel like I have abandoned you as your sister. Estrangement is the last thing I want for the both of us.” Margulis said.</p><p>“I appreciate that, Margulis.”</p><p>“Be safe out there, alright?”</p><p>“Sure.”</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>45 minutes later, Andrei arrives at Gregory’s Headquarter. </em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>(Andrei knock’s on Gregory’s door)</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Oh me oh my… This is shocking! I never thought you would come.”</p><p>“Just open the door, Greg.”</p><p>
  <em>(Gregory opens the door)</em>
</p><p>“I thought you were already dreaming about tooth fairies.” Gregory teased Andrei.</p><p>“Very funny, Greg.”</p><p>“C’mon man. Loosen up, will ya?!”</p><p>“Let’s get to business.”</p><p>Gregory rolls his eyes to Andrei.</p><p>“Anyways, this is the message.” Gregory replied</p><p>Gregory shows Andrei the message on his computer. Andrei reads the writings very closely.</p><p>“This doesn’t make sense. What does this even mean?”</p><p>“I thought that somebody was trolling us, or you trolling me, but I thought about it long and hard.” Gregory replies.</p><p>“What is it?” Andrei asked curiously.</p><p>“Well, literacy plays an important role in this. These lines were written in a manner of normal sentence construction, pure literacy rather. That is definitely recognisable. It’s like some form of foreign language with its set of writing symbols, like alphabets.” Gregory said.</p><p>“This symbol here… it looks like a star.” Andrei pointed to the symbol.</p><p>“We need to send this to Archimedean Kaleen. She probably can figure out what it means.” Gregory suggested.</p><p>“That sounds like a plan.” Andrei responded.</p><p>“She very talented, and very smart for her age.” Gregory stated.</p><p>“I agree. She moved up way too quickly in that department, I might say.” Andrei said.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p><p>*********</p><p>*********</p><p>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>(Kaleen’s phone rings during a lecture)</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>“Hello?” Kaleen answered.</p><p>“Hey. Am I speaking to Kaleen?”</p><p>“Yes, Kaleen speaking.”</p><p>“Great. This is Andrei. Archimedean Andrei.”</p><p>“Wait… the real Andrei? The Astronaut?”</p><p>“Yeah, that’s him.”</p><p>“Wow… I’m…. I’m...”</p><p>“Speechless?” Andrei completed Kaleen’s statement.</p><p>“It’s an honour to meet you… over the phone?”</p><p>“We will meet soon enough.”</p><p>“That would be great, sir. How can I help you?” Kaleen asked excitedly.</p><p>“There’s something I want you to help me with. It’s really important. Let’s meet at St. Silverton, tomorrow, 3 PM sharp, Gregory’s Headquarter. I will send you the location.” Andrei said.</p><p>“Archimedean Gregory? The computer genius? He created one of the most tight security encryption, specifically the 512-bit blockchain encryption. Many attempted to break it but failed.” Kaleen said excitedly.</p><p>“That’s about right.” Andrei replied.</p><p>“I will be there as soon as I can.” Kaleen ends the call.</p><p>
  <em>(The lecture comes to an end.)</em>
</p><p>“Kaleen, can we talk for a moment?” Archimedean Professor Schoub requested.</p><p>“Okay.” Kaleen said</p><p>“There has been a new development. We want you to lead the second group new to this course. New students, if I can put it right.”</p><p>“No problem, I guess.”</p><p>“Don’t guess Kaleen. We need you here. You are one of our brightest student here. We could use a helping hand.”</p><p>Kaleen was hesitant to accepting the request.</p><p>“It’s volunteer work. You can say no if you don’t want to.”</p><p>“I will do it. There’s a neuro-linguistic theory I’m working on that I can test on the new students. It will be a time well-spent event.”</p><p>“Great to hear that Kaleen.”</p><p>As Kaleen left the lecture room, Kaleen head straight to her destination. Gregory’s headquarter looked like a mansion, a highly expensive headquarter. Modern lighting, fancy and exquisite furniture, a dream headquarter anyone would wish for. The front door was wide opened. As Kaleen entered, she was astonished at the interior design of the headquarter. Searching for Andrei and Gregory in the entrance room, she called for them.</p><p>“Hello? It’s Kaleen!”</p><p>“You got your timing handled well, huh?” Gregory said.</p><p>“It’s an honour to be here, in such an exquisite room. You got the interior handled well, huh?”</p><p>“Yeah. It’s quite a headache running around trying to find the right materials for all of this. A tedious grind, I must say.” Gregory replied.</p><p>“Great, you made it in time. Right, right, right. I’m Archimedean Andrei and this is Archimedean Gregory. You don’t have to introduce yourself. We already know you.” Andrei said</p><p>“Great. So, what’s seems to be a problem?” Kaleen asked in enthusiasm.</p><p>“Well, we have an encrypted message… it has been decrypted by this handsome genius here and we seems to not understand what the content of the message means.”</p><p>“Is it a language or literacy problem?” Kaleen asked.</p><p>“Well, it’s both.” Andrei stated.</p><p>“Strange.”</p><p>“Why is that Kaleen?” Gregory asked.</p><p>“Never mind. Let’s see what the message is all about.” Kaleen requested.</p><p>Gregory led Kaleen to the research room where he decrypted the message.</p><p>“Well, here’s the message.” Andrei handed the printed pages of the message.</p><p>Kaleen looked very closely to the scripts. Something registers in her mind</p><p>“This writing is familiar.” Kaleen said</p><p>“Tell me more.” Andrei listened closely</p><p>“I definitely saw this type of writing somewhere or someone showed me this before. I will have to study these more closely. I will need time.” Kaleen stated.</p><p>“Please don’t take too much time.” Gregory pleaded.</p><p>“Okay I will try…” Kaleen realises something odd with the scripts “… to speed things up.” Kaleen said.</p><p>Kaleen exits the room. On her way out, she came to halt and turn to Andrei when he was conversing with Gregory.</p><p>“Andrei.” Kaleen interrupts Andrei</p><p>“I’m listening.”</p><p>“Where did you find this encrypted message?”</p><p>“Well, I was boarding a spaceship with some of my colleagues to further investigate the source of the magnetic flux…”</p><p>“Which happened 28 years ago?” Kaleen asked.</p><p>“Yeah. Until we saw some mysterious kind of energy. It was blooming in white light and had thunderstorms occurring in it. We assume…”</p><p>“Glooming white light and thunderstorms, all happened in space, at the same time?” Kaleen asked, interrupting Andrei.</p><p>“Sure.” Andrei responded.</p><p>“You know something, don’t you?” Gregory asked curiously.</p><p>“The New Loka” Kaleen uttered.</p><p>“Excuse me dear?” Gregory asked.</p><p>“The New Loka. She mentioned something about some inter-universal force that embodied itself in white glooming energy.” Kaleen responded.</p><p>“When was this?” Andrei asked.</p><p>“New Loka used to tell these stories of the white glooming energy and how dangerous it was. She also mentioned that those who venture in it usually don’t come back as they remain stuck there. Some who are lucky to escape it and return, they return with their minds altered. She told these stories many years ago.” Kaleen replied.</p><p>“Like mind manipulation?” Gregory asked.</p><p>“Not only that. They change physically. Their whole body becomes paralysed, sometimes they can be responsive, sometimes not. Some even go into a coma and most never recover from it. Their eye colour, especially the iris, changes.” Kaleen stated.</p><p>Andrei started to feel a cold spreading through his body, starting from his legs, all the way up his neck, head, nose and skull. He immediately thought about his father, Drusus.</p><p>“Speak no more!” Andrei seemed agitated.</p><p>“What’s the matter Andrei?” Gregory asked.</p><p>“I think… I think my father suffered the same fate.” Andrei replied.</p><p>“But didn’t you say your father died from prostate cancer?” Gregory asked.</p><p>Andrei clenched his fists as he stood near the counter and looked down.</p><p>“Andrei, if you know something, you have to tell us. We are dealing with a threat that we don’t know of its nature.” Gregory pleaded.</p><p>Andrei gave a heavy sigh, calming down.</p><p>“I lied about his cause of death. His autopsy came back neutral. We have no idea what happened and what killed him exactly. What you are describing Kaleen, that is exactly what happened to him.”</p><p>“Man, I’m sorry.” Gregory attempted to comfort Andrei.</p><p>“Let’s not assume the worst as yet. Let me go consult with the New Loka about this and find out more, if that’s the right plan you approve Andrei.” Kaleen said.</p><p>“She won’t move further with this unless you give her the green light.” Gregory asked Andrei.</p><p>“Go ahead, Kaleen. As long as you don’t mention my father and the condition he suffered from due to this… whatever it is, to the New Loka.” Andrei said.</p><p>“Don’t worry. I got your back.” Kaleen walks off.</p><p>“Let’s just wait on her until she finds something concrete.” Gregory stated.</p><p>Andrei eases and gets into a positive mood.</p><p>“Well, that’s about it, then. Don’t let it get to you, Andrei.”</p><p>“I’ll see you tomorrow at work. Sleep tight.” Andrei leaves</p><p>Gregory is left stunned. This is exactly what his father, Ashonti, envisioned in his dream. A prophecy, perhaps. He never had the chance to mention it to Andrei due to his unfounded fear. </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Pre-Old War: Part 1, Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Pre-Old War, Part 2 coming soon.</p>
<p>To Be Continued.</p>
<p>Follow and DM me on the Xbox App at @ZenJackSynn. You can download the Xbox app on Android and iOS.</p>
<p>Let me know what you think of the first part of my series. Any suggestions are welcome.</p>
<p>Thank you for reading.</p>
  </div></div>
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